Messages
by onisaur
Summary: [Complete] [Dx6x9] Zech and Lucrezia's married life blinded them to Dorothy's despair. But very soon, Dorothy would find the peace she sought. Unless... fate chose a different path.
1. Messages

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
Dedicated to Killraven.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
Messages.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
The house was empty. Mayhaps an oddity, but singularly, this attribute deepened the silence between the click and the first uttered words.  
  
"You've reached the comm of Milliardo and Lucrezia Peacecraft. Please leave your message and we'll get back with soon."  
  
How do recordings lose so many binding comforts of a loving voice, yet instill such painful memories with perfect accuracy? The traditional tone seemed to take so long, ever the mocker. To think this device would play such a pressing role was laughable, but for it to act so disdainful was...  
  
Perhaps it's normal for thoughts to randomly crawl away when driven by the stress of finality.  
  
"Milliardo? It's Dorothy... This will prove most awkward if you're listening presently... I suppose not. Then... I wanted to tell y-... This message is for Noi-.. your wife. ..Lucrezia? I was hoping to see you today. I'm sorry you weren't able to make it. I knew my choice of locations would be... discomforting. I'm sorry. If I can't attend next anniversary, please take the flowers to his grave for me. What I called abou-" Beep. Click.  
  
"God."  
  
It's sad that something so trivial can make one laugh, ... or cry. The sound of my own voice reminds me how far I'd fallen by now. A Catalonia's hand began the greatest war in history, yet mine trembles at pressing buttons on a screen. I suppose it's best to... no. Even with my decisions made, the duty of my name alone holds me from speaking my dishonor aloud.  
  
"You've reached the comm of Milliardo and Lucrezia Peacecraft. Please leave your message and we'll get back with soon."  
  
Soon. That smile, I couldn't help it. Irony bodes in the minds of the lost.  
  
"Milliardo, I.. Lucrezia, I planned my message poorly. I meant to leave... to... This is.. for Milliardo. General Milliardo. Forgive my absence yester-eve. I.. realized just how behind in my work I am. At your evening's expense I completed it, though. It was selfish of me, yet imperative. I wanted to tell you that the arrangements are complete. At-" Beep. Click.  
  
"Damn."  
  
I should have learned by now.  
  
Even now I find myself awash in silly travesties of words. Surely, had I the capacity to 'learn', I wouldn't be doing this. Would I?  
  
"You've reached the comm of Milli-"  
  
Cupping the earpiece helped. In life we are given certain tolerances, and by flaw or by design, mine have been met. The beep of these machines is so...  
  
"Mr. and Mrs. Peacecraft, I thank you both. Lucrezia, you have been both my mother and friend. I wish our blood had bound us together so much sooner. And though I cherish you, it is for you that I act. Milliardo... Take care of her. She loves you, perhaps more than even I. I accepted that she and I both did our best to comfort and support you when White-" Beep. Click.  
  
Expected this time, yet it burns inside me hatred. The simple functions of time and technology lord across the passions and ideals that borne them.  
  
"You've rea-"  
  
I've reached nothing. I saved men's lives. My mind still burns with every exerted synapse the forsaken Zero raped me through. Every doll in my control and no one spoke of who I saved. No.  
  
It was always who I've lead to death.  
  
"Please... just listen. I... Zechs, we both gave our lives to you. And you chose, and... And chose well. And no one... will ever question you, because you did right. But I can't... deal with being... between you and Luc. I want to live, but this isn't living. You... you... accepted me... into White Fang. Was it my words? Or was it... me?... I'm sorr-" Beep. Click.  
  
I...  
  
No, it was close enough.  
  
And besides, I have everything written.  
  
'Dear Count,  
  
There once were two girls; one destined to lead a war, one too in love to stop it.  
  
They both loved a man.  
  
One saved him, and even now gives him hope.  
  
One fought for him, and with her death, set him free.'  
  
... Yes.  
  
Beloved King,  
  
Be free.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~ 


	2. Found

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
Dedicated to Killraven.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
Found.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
If the meetings were meant to be so long, they'd have thought to ask us to bring sleepover gear. The fools still think I consider this a promotion from instructing cadets. Four hours in a clean, formal dining hall, and all I want now is a shower to cleanse myself of all the political slime.  
  
But it's over now. And good riddance. Onward to more meaningful matters, like getting the gum off my boot. I'm glad she found a studio she's comfortable in, but..  
  
It wouldn't kill the owners to at least clean the sidewalk now and then. Oh well, at least the inside is clean. Five clean floors. Why did she have to get one on the fifth floor this far from the lift? Even a reclusive stateswoman could have made the occasional visitor's trek a lesser inconvenience.  
  
Dorothy, you amaze me.  
  
More staring eyes. Why haven't these people taken the news to heart? It's not like there aren't enough vid-screens in the world to make it known. I'm not a walking rank. I'm a Preventer; not an officer, not a Special, not a Romefeller. I love these simple marble floors, but all I ever get to see in their reflection is people stepping back and moving away. Did I scream at them for being the civilians this building was built to house? When will people realize I'm a human, too? What other kind of creature could ever wear boots, and at that, ones with gum in the treads.  
  
Even my sighs are raspy. This is getting old. It's been, what, two hours now my throat's been so dry? So constricting, there must be a storm coming in.  
  
Shifting keys in pocket. Cars. I'd give a months pay if the kisers in the motor pool would let me keep the suit off duty. Anything's better than that behemoth. Dearest Milliardo, you knew I needed a car, and I know you want me to be safe, but you aren't the only one who likes 'dangerous' little sports cars.  
  
Borrowing a mobile suit to run down to Dorothy's, that's a thought. Way to go, Luc, prove you're just a simple human at heart. Dream of flying an 8-ton mech to pick up a friend down the road. My sighs still sound raspy.  
  
I hope Dor's made some headway on that mobile doll metal's recovery. It has to be hard, though. What was it with her eyes? I've never seen her betray that much emotion over an assignment before, not in peacetime at least.  
  
Trepidation, it had to've been. Hesitance, but resignation. I thought she'd be happy to rid herself of those mindless creations. And what's with suddenly having the urge to work through the night?  
  
Don't worry, Dorothy. Tonight you're going to enjoy yourself. And I'm not going to accept posh excuses about paperwork and duty. Today's the day, and I know the graveside comes first. But you need to get out of your five-floor fortress and see the nightlife. It's been too long since you've smiled and meant it.  
  
Here we are: second building, fifth floor, room 01. What Einstein put 01 at the opposite end of the structure from the lift? If the stairs get you there quicker, shouldn't that be a sign?  
  
Decision time, walk in with gum on the boot, or possibly get caught dancing around like an idiot trying to remove it. Well, if it didn't come off on the steps after all that climbing, then it has no good reason to come off on her carpet.  
  
A 'Do Not Disturb' over the entry vid-comm, cute.  
  
I've never had to push the announcement button before. Weird to think of it now, but she's always at the door before I get here. I could swear she must live within arm's reach of it. But if so then, why not today?  
  
"Hey Dorothy, it's Luc."  
  
Checking watch. More than enough time, there's no way your getting out of this, Ms. 'I'd love too, but there's so much to do' Catalonia.  
  
Three knocks should do. You can mute a vid-screen, but you can never mute the door.  
  
But you can answer it, though.  
  
Any time now.  
  
Ok, three louder knocks, she might be in the shower.  
  
Turning the handle. Futile, of course.  
  
But if it weren't for locks, what fun would 'borrowed' key access codes be?  
  
Second code worked, I knew my anniversary was written on her deskboard for a reason.  
  
"Dorothy?"  
  
Hmm. She's tidied up.. and I can't even imagine what it is that makes me think that, she's already obsessively clean to begin with. Somehow something seems more.. placed.  
  
"Hey, Dorothy. It's Luc."  
  
Bathroom door's open, so much for the shower excuse.  
  
"Dorothy?"  
  
RINGBEEP RINGBEEP  
  
Blast that scared me. No missing that ringer. So where is she?  
  
RINGBEEP RINGBEEP  
  
Something's not right here. Dorothy's never let a screen ring through twice.  
  
"Dorothy? It's Luc."  
  
Kitchen, empty.  
  
Hallway, empty.  
  
RINGBEEP RINGBEEP  
  
Family Room, empty.  
  
Bedroom..  
  
-"You've reached the residence of Dorothy Catalonia. Please leave a message."-  
  
-"DOROTHY?!"-  
  
Milliardo?  
  
-"DOROTHY! IT'S ZECHS. YOU HAVE TO PICK UP"-  
  
God Milliardo, your voice. I hear the screen, but ... where is it? Where the hell is that vid-screen?  
  
"DOROTHY! WHERE'S THE SCREEN?"  
  
Dear God, he sounds like he's in pain.  
  
-"DOROTHY, DON'T DO IT. IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! I SWEAR IT! DON'T BE RASH! I'LL COME OVER NOW! WE CAN WORK THIS OUT! DOROTHY!!"-  
  
Page button, Dammit page. I hear it.. Living room?  
  
-"IT'S MY FAULT! I KNOW IT, IT WAS NEVER YOURS. THE WRONG HAS BEEN AGAINST YOU, AND I'M THE ONE TO BLAME!"  
  
Milliardo, What is it? What the hell are your talking about? And WHERE in GOD'S NAME IS THAT RECEIVER? It's not the living room, it's further back. Pantry? No. Closet? No. DAMN!  
  
Wait.. Calm.. Listen..  
  
Balcony.  
  
-"I LOVE YOU, DOROTHY! DON'T YOU SEE? I COULDN'T HURT HER, SHE CARED FOR ME AND SAVE MY LIFE. BUT SO DID YOU, AND YOU FOUGHT BESIDE ME!.. YOU FOUGHT WITH ME! DOROTHY, LISTEN PLEASE! I NEED YOU!"-  
  
I didn't hear that.  
  
I couldn't have.  
  
I'm panicking.  
  
Chair by ledge, Nylon binding. Concentrate.  
  
-"DOROTHY PICK UP, PLEASE!"-  
  
SHUT UP, MILLIARDO! I'm Trying To Work, Do You Think Making Me Cry Helps? It's A Square Knot. I Can Do This.  
  
-"DOROTHY! YOU DON'T HAVE TO KILL YOURSELF!"-  
  
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"  
  
Knot loosened. Almost.. Ok, Unbound. DAMN! I'm not going to lose my balance now.. I don't care how much weights hanging down there. It's my sister, and I Will Pull Her Up!  
  
-"DOROTH.."-  
  
"LUCREZIA! MY NAMES LUCREZIA.. DAMN YOU, MILLIARDO, STOP SAYING HER NAME!!"  
  
The receiver was under the chair suspending the rope. Why couldn't I have kicked it hard enough to silence him. The light... The receiver picked up. He can hear me now... He can hear my grunting, screaming when this horrid rope burns my weak hand. Listen well, Milliardo. The rope is..  
  
KICK/Shatter  
  
I won't let you listen, Milliardo.. because I cannot bare to listen to you.  
  
The binding's twisting tight, she can't be more than... I see her now.  
  
God Dorothy.  
  
Feet, Calves. Ok, a little more and.. Calves on the ledge. Ok.. Pulse. Yes.  
  
Ok, how.. ok, crouching. Your feet over my shoulder, and if I hold your waist and stand like this..  
  
"I'VE GOT YOU!!"  
  
Words. More words. She must be out cold by now. She never heard them. She never heard what Milliardo said.  
  
God Dorothy, why upside-down? Green.. I know this green. You.. What have you done Dorothy? What did you ever do to warrant this? WHY?  
  
The scraping can't be helped, Dorothy. I'm trying but I can't get good enough leverage without your back against the ledge. Tearing.. Something's tearing... it can wait.  
  
Jademilk Poison and settling it by inverted hanging.. God, Dorothy. What is it with Upper Class suicides?  
  
Eye.. Dilated. Still Breathing. Bindings, must loosen the bindings. My hand's bleeding. No time to worry, but the knot's getting slippery. One free.  
  
Ok. Into my arms, Dorothy. I've got you this far. I'm not giving up on you. You're my Sister, and I'm not going to let you go.  
  
Living room, hallway, kitchen, front door.  
  
KICK/SPLINTER  
  
KICK/CRASH  
  
"C'MON DOR, I'VE GOT YOU!"  
  
Five floors.  
  
Lift. I need the lift.  
  
Hold on, Dorothy.  
  
"OUT OF MY WAY!"  
  
Damn people milling in the halls like it's a blasted casino.  
  
"CLEAR THE LIFT! GET THAT DOOR OPEN!"  
  
Finally. Thank you, Sir. At least someone recognizes an emergency situation. This is ludicrous. Emergency crews would take what, nine minutes to get here? The Med building is three minutes east,. Hang on Dorothy.  
  
How slow can this lift go? I can't stop moving. Standing still is ceasing to act. Ceasing to act is taking time to think. I can't think, thinking breeds faults. Instincts think for you, this is an emergency. The training thinks. I refuse to...  
  
Milliardo, what were you saying?  
  
No. Concentrate, Luc, we're almost to the ground floor.  
  
I know it's uncomfortable, Dorothy. Please, just keep breathing. I know I'm holding you too tightly, but I have to know your breathing.  
  
Lift door opening. Ok, to the lot.  
  
"OPEN"  
  
For once in your worthless life, work, forsaken voice activation.  
  
Bless Malta, the bastard worked for once.  
  
Careful.  
  
Ok, just a little more. I hear you Dorothy, I know it hurts... I'm trying... I'm going to save you, Dorothy. The De-Tox is just down the road. We can fix this, Dorothy. I'm not letting you die like this. Milliardo would want me ... I'm.. I'm not going to let you die. Not like this. You're strapped in well enough.  
  
Keys, my keys. Ok, Ignition. Ok, There better not be anyone in my way. Cleared the lot, ok..  
  
"We're on our way. Just keep breathing.."  
  
You too, Luc. Keep breathing.. Millia-... no.. Just breathe. We're almost there.  
  
I'm not stopping for a red light.. Obstacles are not my concern. Rescue missions do not bother with obstacles.  
  
God, this thing is slow turning. The side brakes are more use to me than the steering wheel. This thing handles like a damnable Ground Aries.  
  
Left hand turn. Curb or no curb, I can see the structure. Just ten more city blocks. Shifting gears, traffic's too thick, can't push it any more.  
  
Outside around the coupe, inside passed the hauler. Inside by the bus, outside by the sports car.  
  
Next truck, he can't be merging. Don't pull out..  
  
NO, Don't pull out, Not Yet.. You're blocking..  
  
I'm sorry, Zechs.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~ 


	3. Gathered

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
Dedicated to Killraven.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
Gathered.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
I'm setting it down now.  
  
I could try to call again, but what are the chances it being any different.  
  
This clock lies... It hasn't been 23 minutes.  
  
That's like saying the war was over in just short of a year. Battles are seasons. Theaters are centuries. The war was a millennia. And this insipid device claims it's only been 23 minutes since...  
  
This pain in my chest... nothing measured in minutes could cause me so much grief. The guilt, though... the guilt isn't right.  
  
Why do I feel guilty? This phantasm in my mind that that hoarse breath was someone else's... lunacy.  
  
It defies logic. If anyone was with Dorothy, There's no manner in which they would have let her go through with it.  
  
But still, it sounded like...  
  
KNOCKKNOCK.  
  
This is no time.  
  
Click. "Yes?"  
  
"Officer Wind, Message for you, Sir."  
  
Curse this furniture... to think after this many months I still trip on..  
  
"Come in."  
  
"Yes, Sir."  
  
"State your business."  
  
"Regrettable, Sir. I was ordered to inform you of a tragedy... When-"  
  
"Yes, yes... I know.." Let him see me like this... distraught and resigning hard into a chair like a slobbering drunk. How I wish an escape from this event were so easily obtained. Such astonishment in his eyes. How could I have called in th...  
  
...wait, I didn't call it in... I meant to but... That buzz on Noins phone and the...  
  
"Sir, You know of it already? The told me there was no way You'd be aware of the extent of..."  
  
"WHO ELSE was there, Soldier?"  
  
"Sir? I ...It was public, Sir, we have at least a dozen witnesses."  
  
"REDICULOUS! She was in her Apartment! ..But there was another, now WHO WAS IT?"  
  
His Salute... he's intimidated... Why isn't he strong in his conviction to withhold this information. Who could have sent this man to my door on such an errand so meagerly informed.  
  
"Sir, all I can offer is the news I was given to deliver. Both victims are alive. The car's permacel-"  
  
Why? ...Why is he telling me about a car wreck? How could this be relevant? ...Two victims? ...So he's stopped now hearing me groan. So what... when will someone learn relevance and priority.  
  
"Sir, Your Wife Is..."  
  
"Was Headed to-"  
  
"...in critical condition, Sir."  
  
Standing. My hands... gripping such flimsy material of his collar hardly makes my grip firm on him. Slamming him to a wall, pinning him there, this is my only recourse. Those words.... say them and now.  
  
"Why is my Wife In Critical Condition? TELL ME!"  
  
"She... She... had Ms.Catalonia in her car.. AS far as we know she was driving her to the De-Tox Ward. She was cut off and the vehicle rolled. She took the worst of it, Sir. She shielded Ms. Catalonia and took most of the windshield with her back, Sir."  
  
He's helping me sit again... I can't feel... I'm sitting but all I feel is the fall... He's continuing... How can there be more to this?  
  
"The vehicles frame partially caved in and pinned them both, but the were mostly injured by the debris and initial impact. To our best guesswork, Ms. Catalonia was unconscious and didn't react, saving herself the bulk of the possible injury... She's currently receiving transfusions to clear the poison from her system and is no longer considered High Critical. Your wife was unresponsive but is still in the process of having the fragments removed. The doctors have stated she's improving but the effects of the trauma are still too far off to judge."  
  
"...sh ...She...She's Strong, Soldier."  
  
"Yes, Sir. An Ausprey is waiting, Sir."  
  
"Hel-help... me... straighten up... I need to look... composed for them. Th-th-they..."  
  
Damn these tears. They won't stain these sleeves anymore than the last.  
  
"They will need my support, and I will need to present myself as calm and confident. Fetch the tie by my bed."  
  
Remember the training. Boot campers would have sold their souls to be dressed before an alarm sounded. The current attire will have to do, but surely can be refined. Tie in place. Hair brushed. Quick inspection by the aiding messenger garnered a nod. It is time.  
  
Letting the door close and lock on it's own, the jog to the Ausprey seemed to blur. What has happened in so short a time as this? The pressing of force against me pinning me to my seat is the nearest to a comforting I can feel. This pilot is aggressive, shifting the props from lift to flight so quickly...   
  
Noin... that was you I heard.  
  
Dorothy, how did all this become necessary?  
  
Who's shaking me? What has he got to say so impor...  
  
"-ermission to use reserve-"  
  
"What?"  
  
"The Pilot requests permi-"  
  
"YES, Permission Granted."  
  
Buckling my extended harness even as I speak. Somewhere inside me something still wants me to live through this day... or it's the training. As I put on the earguards... for just a moment, I felt like I heard nothing. I saw them both... I heard their voices... Such simple things they said... it was the silence that brings them closer to me. They need me to be who I am to them. I must avoid the silence and losing myself in that grief of thinking of only what they are to me. The shriek of those infernal ramjets... I'm still convinced gundam smarthelmets were the only thing that could keep out that banshee's wail. The burn was short, though. We're descending. Dear God, this angle's steep. This pilot must have been a mobile suit pilot once. I wouldn't be any different, then. The pilot knows where we're headed, and the urgency is to reach the destination.  
  
But for me... what is the destination?  
  
The impact of those wheels on the helipad wasn't light. There is a thumbs up from the pilot. I hope my nod and thumbs up response mean something to this one. I don't have the time to thank this team enough.  
  
Doctors, hallways, nurses, corridors... all obstacles,   
  
Are they any different from the distance in my thoughts?  
  
Lucrezia...  
  
Dorothy...  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
The hours passed slowly. Dorothy was waking but far from coherently aware. Word came that Lucrezia had stabilized. The reconstruction had been a success, but the unconsciousness lay deeper than merely the anesthetics.  
  
Zechs had finally taken a seat when the nurses urged him to stop pacing between them and the detox patient. He sat forward with his hands clasped, elbows on thighs, pensively aware of every ragged breath Dorothy's mask concealed. He was more aware of the imagined breaths of the one to be placed in the second bed of the room... the one still made and untouched.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~ 


	4. Questioned

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
Dedicated to Killraven.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
Questioned.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
How heavy is light supposed to be?  
  
It's... it's unbearable.  
  
It's cold, though.  
  
So very cold, so damp and inviting.  
  
There's more to this light, there must be.  
  
Oh God...  
  
That.. that flash, that sound..  
  
It moved and.. and I felt.. yes.  
  
It can happen again, I know I can make it happen again...  
  
I want to feel...  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
A kind face smiled at seeing the blinks and focused glances of her patient.  
  
"Ah, Ms. Catalonia... welcome back."  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
How did she get here without me noticing? I just finished the knots only a moment ago and.. but how is she walking up this wall? That's impossible.  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
"That's right, everything will be ok. Just rest, Ms. Catalonia. You'll be well soon enough. That was quite an ordeal, I've heard." The nurse babbled on insisting on keeping Dorothy's eyes on her and creating motion around the waking woman to give depth back to the world. "Oh that band is caught again, isn't it." Reaching out to loosen the mask band that was once again getting caught in the patients long hair, the nurse looked deeply into her eyes and smiled pleased with the focusing of her pupils. Straightening the covers some and rambling a bit more as nurses do, she went about her work and soon Dorothy was asleep again.  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
That motion.. I felt something.. her hand was doing something to my face. I felt my .. my neck. I can feel my face! My.. this mask, the air.. God it burns my lungs.. She couldn't have been walking on the wall .. those lights were.. above..I can work this out, there has to be a reason for this. The setting is all wro..   
  
Wait.  
  
I'm in a hospital.  
  
I..  
  
I'm not going to die.  
  
This..  
  
This wasn't my plan.  
  
Who planned this.. who took this from me?  
  
Who did I challenge now?  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
"I will see her promptly."  
  
"No, Sir. I cannot withhold your right to see your wife, but in her current state I would not suggest it. However, in the case of Ms. Catalonia, I do have that right and my order stands. You will not see her until I am convinced she is ready. This is not negotiable."  
  
"Preposterous, I was allowed in the Emergency Room. Why not here? Don't you understand why she did it? Have you any idea what my presence will mean to her."  
  
"I don't. And you most certainly don't either at this point. In the Emergency Room she was hardly near consciousness. Now, she is. She's under the influence of the most powerful viraldetoxens we have, and because she is at the least partially aware of her surroundings, your presence will not be allowed. Let me remind you that she is under suicide watch and until we can assess the stimuli that caused this tendency in her, we are taking no chances, Understood?"  
  
"You realize I can enforce my rank in this situation to-"  
  
"This is a Recovery ICU and she is the patient of a Class 7 DeTox Ward, Officer Merquise. The only title that holds rank here is Senior Physician and that title is mine. The only two patients in this wing are your wife and Ms. Catalonia. My attention is quite taken in finding the best possible means of treating them both, but if you intend on having my orders ignored in my own ward, then I have no choice but to stand down while you compromise my teams efforts and take both their recoveries personally into your hands. Is that what you intend to accomplish, Officer Merquise? Are you confident in yourself to that degree?"  
  
The frustration of dejection had no choice but to secede to reason.  
  
"No. I am not confident in myself to do your job."  
  
"thank you. If you want, The nurse can give you a relaxer that I assure you will not interfere with your state of mind by the time I can allow you in. But that is the most I can do. Excuse me now."  
  
Milliardo wouldn't accept something as superficial as chemicals to calm himself, but just now, Zechs Merquise would.  
  
"Nurse?.."  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
"...n..nur..s.."  
  
The nurse quickly reached the bedside.  
  
"Yes, Ms. Catalonia. I'm right here."  
  
"..w..y"  
  
She looked confused by this first attempt at inquiry. "Deep breathe, Ms. Catalonia. The oxygen will take some time to work out the fluid in your lungs, just breathe slowly."  
  
She was somewhat amazed to see the patient's nod. Usually, a great deal of time and repetition is needed for a patient under this kind of chemical burden to assess a command and respond, usually they just fight or ignore it.  
  
After a moment of slow by steady breathing, Dorothy's eyes focus on the nurse once more.  
  
"...w..y.. am.. i.. he...er"  
  
The nurse steeled herself as a shiver went down her spine. Something about this woman's eyes, not to mention a mind capable of such quick functional recovery.  
  
"You were saved, Ms. Catalonia. Officer Merquise saved you, but tragically, on t-"  
  
"zz..ze..cs?"  
  
"Oh, No Ma'am, his wife, Lucrezia Merquise."  
  
The eyes closed. The nurse sighed and set about checking vitals. "Unfortunately there wa... Ms. Catalonia?"  
  
She checked the numerous readouts around her, something was spiking the patient's blood pressure, an intense stress. But it wasn't reading as a neuro pain.  
  
"Ms. Catalonia? What's wrong? ... Why are you crying?"  
  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~ 


	5. Locked

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
Dedicated to Killraven.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
Locked.  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~  
  
Dorothy.. just hang on.  
  
I'm sorry I hit your head with my shoulder...  
  
Please understand, I know you can't see what's coming...  
  
My sides giving way first.. so it's ok.  
  
I'll keep you safe...  
  
I should have strapped you in better...  
  
But it's ok, I've got you...  
  
Just hang on, the driver side is pulling... We'll be airborne in a moment.  
  
Today is no day to call us "Lucky", but this isn't as bad as it could be.. in an Ares there wouldn't have been nearly the room to escape a collapsing cockpit.  
  
What I wouldn't give for thrusters now though..  
  
The lift.. no gravity... we're airborne.  
  
Hold on Dorothy.. I know you're asleep but.. but hold on.  
  
So close.. I was looking at it just a moment ago..  
  
And then I didn't compensate enough..  
  
Or overcompen..  
  
What did I do?.. It's.,  
  
The turn, this turn is all wrong.. how could we be spinning this way? We'll take out an oncoming car in the other lane at this rate...  
  
Ok Dorothy, I'm going to roll towards you..  
  
As long as you don't move, I'll be able to block the windshield..  
  
That soun-.. It's already coming...  
  
How is this happening so fast?..  
  
GOD!  
  
That.. I felt it.. left.. lower back?  
  
That.. God it's cutting into me..  
  
Why isn't... why is it still.. moving?  
  
Dorothy, it just.. it just broke my rib, I..  
  
IT'S!..  
  
Anoth.. Another..  
  
My lung, it's in my lung..  
  
Dorothy, I don't know if I can..  
  
SS!..  
  
St.. Stop them.. three now.. they..  
  
Dorothy.. I can't.. hold you..  
  
I can't feel my arms.. I think I'm holding you but..  
  
I can't stop them, they'll g..  
  
ET!...  
  
Get you.. th .. through .. m...me.  
  
Still.. More.. My..  
  
They'll find you, Dorothy Catalonia..  
  
When you wake up from all this..  
  
Tell them I tried..  
  
I can't feel my body.. and it's.. it's so dark..  
  
I know I'm holding you, I couldn't have let go..  
  
But those things have me now, it must be.. alive, it's tearing my back and..  
  
Teeth, the.. no it's.. I don't know..  
  
The left rotor-blade must have been hit.. I can feel us spinning..  
  
You saw the rocket didn't you?  
  
These men, I have to get them out..  
  
I'm the Instructor.. and this is the war we trained them for..  
  
What are you doing here, Catalonia?  
  
You aren't a soldier..  
  
You're not going to die..   
  
But I'll die a soldier's death..  
  
Don't you see, Ms. Political?  
  
I'm dying while you're just sitting and giving orders...  
  
And..  
  
And that's what he wants...  
  
Because he is a soldier.. and..  
  
My men, they're dying, I can..  
  
I'm holding on tightly, isn't that enough?  
  
The fire can't be the fuel.. I wouldn't see it.. it's methenol..  
  
I don't understand...  
  
Why won't my eyes open..  
  
There are so many things I have to watch,,,  
  
That I can't bare to see...  
  
So tell Zechs I tried...  
  
And he'll tell you why I failed..  
  
Because he always seemed to love me..  
  
But he never opened those last hidden doors..  
  
And I'm holding you, Dorothy, remember?  
  
I can feel them in your pocket... yes.  
  
You were the one holding the keys...  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
With as easy a word as a breath, He proved my worth.  
  
Was I really asking for the responsibility?  
  
If only he knew my history.  
  
That I, in another life bound to this one only by skin and paper, was a King, and martyr to a war.  
  
Is that not responsibility enough?  
  
But he wasn't concerned with my rank.  
  
Insubordination...  
  
But, wasn't he following a truer order than mine?  
  
To care at all costs for the victims he treats?  
  
I'm a victim..  
  
I loved them both for and..  
  
And proved it meant nothing.  
  
Dorothy, I drove you to this, and only in my selfish dreams could I paint it as simple a cause or death as the countless victims that died before me in battle.  
  
Lucrezia, I... You see the lie I am now.  
  
Forsaken of my blood, I covered my face.  
  
But it was the mask I thought of, not my given skin.  
  
You saw through the mask, and know the skin is dead.  
  
"Officer Mer-"  
  
"YES?"  
  
"The.. doctor wants to ta-"  
  
"Take me there."  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
"And her condition?"  
  
Looking over his notes to assert his words before cementing them in the worried husband's mind, "Her body will recover fully, given time and care, but.. She is.. slow in responding to any stimuli"  
  
"She's ... in a coma."  
  
"Yes, a form of coma."  
  
" ... The technology to raise a million men to war and cut them down in hours, and we stand helpless with the most ancient of sleeping deaths... May I see her now?"  
  
"You don't want t-"  
  
"MAY I See her now?"  
  
" ... very well. Nurse, Please take Officer Merquise to ICU."  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
The keys.  
  
I know I had them somewhere..  
  
I hope that voice.. that.. car door whatever.  
  
How slow can this lift be... Thank you, Sir, for holding the door.  
  
At least someone sees and emergency...  
  
Hang on Dorothy, I've got you..  
  
Just when you thought you could throw yourself away...  
  
I can't let you die, silly girl.  
  
Because you have the key.  
  
The key to the door...  
  
I hear it openning...  
  
Zechs...  
  
Thank God your here Zechs... It's Dorothy, she tried to kill herself...  
  
Zechs?  
  
What's wrong, Zechs?  
  
ZECHS?  
  
This is no time to be visiting bed patients. Can't you see an emergency?  
  
Can't you see me and Dorothy?  
  
Don't you see?  
  
Did you ever see me?  
  
  
~{@}~  
  
  
"May I see... him today?"  
  
"He's currently visiting his wife in ICU, Miss."  
  
"Of course... And what is... her condi... tion curren... tly?"  
  
"Blessedly she's recovering well. Her body will heal fully within a few months."  
  
"You lie."  
  
"Ms. Catalonia, I Would Never!"  
  
"Lie? ... Yes you w... would... Because I... can see it... in your eyes... and what... ever you're hold... ing back is... far more imp... ortant than... what you say."  
  
"Ms. Catalonia, you're under the influence of highly disorienting medications. I'm sorry I'm unable to ease your concerns, but I assure you that's are the medicines tal-"  
  
"HA! ... Insipid... ness I ... assure you, Nurse... Influence?... I've taken... on ZERO... and you think... drugs can hin.. der my mind?... No, I see cl... learly, Nurse... So clearly... I was dead, re... member, Nurse?... And that... was when I... was still stand... ing at his side."  
  
"I'm sorry, Ms. Catalonia. But all I can tell you is that Mrs. Merqui-"  
  
"I KNOW HER NAME!"  
  
"Calm down, Miss. Please? You're blood pressure is ris-"  
  
"THEN ANSWER ME! IS SHE AS CURSEDLY AWAKE AS I AM?"  
  
"Why No, Miss. She's still unconscious... the... the reconstruction of that much damage is highly traumatic and... Miss? ...Miss this is hardly a funny matter."  
  
"CORRECT!... So I'll ask you this once, NEVER presume you... know traumat... ic again. I don... 't care how many... years you work here... That woman has... Flown in the... Face of Hell... and Some of u... us... never... left it."  
  
"The.. the war is over, Ms. Catalonia."  
  
"Precious fool,.. keep telling your... self that every... morning as you... wake. Because ...the Theater... of Peace is just... beginning... and we will all... wish our enemies wore... mobile suits by it's end."  
  
  
~~~  
~@~  
~~~ 


	6. Changed

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
Dedicated to Killraven.  
  
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--O--  
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Changed.  
  
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--O--  
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"It's ok, Sir. Just relax, I know it hurts."  
  
What did they do to you, Luc?  
  
"Elsie would you get another bin? I'm having to hold his hair back and I can't reach one."  
  
God, Luc.  
  
No deity would ever have granted man the right to do such things to another human's body.  
  
"Thank you, Elsie. Ok, Sir, here's another bin. Would you like water or anything else to help your stomach settle?"  
  
"Wh... where.. is.. he?"  
  
"The Doctor? He had to check on anoth- Oh.. He's here now, actually. Doctor? This gentleman w-"  
  
"GET HIM OUT of here, Mary. His visitation has ended."  
  
"wa- th- .. What? .. Ye.. Yes Sir!"  
  
You can't move me.. you bastard..  
  
You can't wave your wrist and expect all responsibility to just fade away.  
  
That's my wife.  
  
"Officer Merquise, please Sir, the doctor wants you to le-"  
  
"..Pea.. Peacecr..craft"  
  
"What, Sir? I couldn't quite understand you. But please come along.. we can bring the bin."  
  
"..not...leaving"  
  
"Pardon me, Officer Merquise, but you Are. I'll not have you contaminating this room any longer."  
  
"You heard the Doctor, Sir. Please do come along now. We'll clean up your shirt good as n-"  
  
"UNHAND ME!"  
  
How DARE they treat me like a child now. Who do they think I am?  
  
"Officer Merquise, That's quite enough. If you do not vacate this room immediately, you'll leave me no choice but t-"  
  
"NO CHOICE? YOU NEVER HAD A CHOICE! .. LOOK AT WHAT YOU DID TO HER! .. NO MAN EVER HAD THE RIGHT TO BUTCHER HER AND YOU CALL IT A CHOICE?!"  
  
"I SAVED HER LIFE! AND I TRIED TO KEEP YOU FROM SEEING HER THIS WAY FOR A REASON! Now Stand Down and leave or you Will be removed."  
  
The alarms, the nurse by the window, she did it. Call the guards, your worthless waste. This isn't your fight.  
  
CHI-CHACK.  
  
"OH MY G-"  
  
"ELSIE, MARY, Stay back!"  
  
"THAT'S RIGHT! .. ALL OF YOU!"  
  
His eyes, those narrow eyes. What are you thinking now, Doctor? This is no longer your sick scenario where you're left alone to run free with such questionable proceedures. What does it feel like to be stood up to, hm? What does accountability feel like to a moral newborn.  
  
I have the gun in my hand. I am in control. This man, this monster, he has no heart. His eyes, he's showing so little fear, because the damage is so far complete. What did he do to you Luc.. He showed you no mercy.  
  
Once more, you've been taken advantage of, Lucrezia.  
  
"What do you intend to do now, Officer M-"  
  
"LISTEN! ... You're going to call 28th Medical. When the security detail arrives, we'll take her to the roof to be airlifted to their ward. I Will NOT let you mishandle this case further!"  
  
"Impossible. She'd never survive the trip at this stage of recovery. You'd be killing her to tr-"  
  
"SILENCE! I've Seen what you call 'Survival'. And SHE will NOT Live her life like THAT because of YOU! It Ends NOW!"  
  
"Doctor! Her Vitals ar-"  
  
"STEP Away from the bed, Merquise. Elsie needs to look at the read-outs behind you."  
  
"What do you need to know, hm? Do you think I'm going to turn my back on such a pl-"  
  
BEEEEEP  
  
I can't do this.. How did I let my self be surrounded. I'll hold them off.. I'll look at the machine but, but.. I.. I won't let them near her.. I have to call the chopper, but.. what if that signal's serious.. I  
  
"PUT THE GUN DOWN, Merquise. This is no place for mindless heroics."  
  
"GET BACK!"  
  
BEEEEEP  
  
"WHAT IS THAT BEEPING!?"  
  
"Sir, if you just move to the side, I ca-"  
  
"STAY BACK!"  
  
They're coming. How many? 3.. 4 of them..  
  
Heavy boots, body armor. This .38 is useless.  
  
Five of them.  
  
SHIC-SHINK  
  
A silent impass.  
  
"Officer Merquise. I appreciate your distress. However, you've threatened my nurses as well as my patient by these irrational actions. No more. Put the safety on and set the weapon down or these men will relieve you of it forcibly."  
  
Luc, They .. I .. wasn't prepared.  
  
They're lunging towards me now.  
  
Not yet .. Please, not yet..  
  
I need to see you once more..  
  
even like this, just.. see you..  
  
what's left of you.  
  
MY NECK.. What's stabbed my neck?  
  
Which one did it? The guards weren't close enough..  
  
Who could have reached me that w-  
  
The Doctor..  
  
What did you stick in my neck?  
  
Why is th-  
  
Why's the dark..  
  
The room's ge-..  
  
getting darker..  
  
My leg's, why can't I feel them..  
  
I can't feel anything .  
  
Noin.  
.   
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--O--  
------  
  
ZECHS!  
  
Somebody! Please Help Him!  
  
What Are they Doing to you, Zechs?  
  
Can't you Hear me?  
  
I saw them rushing down the hall and I've been screaming to you!  
  
This can't be real..  
  
Who's Bed Is That?  
  
Who would have Five Heavily Armed Guards?  
  
You were just visiting. Right, Zechs?  
  
You look so pale, your reaction was so violent.  
  
We've Seen Death, Love. Why did seeing that patient disturb you so?  
  
What are you saying?  
  
I see them talking, too, but I can't hear any of you!  
  
My ears are still throbbing from that rotor blade..  
  
Wait, maybe it was an engine.. I can't remember.  
  
Just look at me, Zechs. Please?  
  
Show me you eyes so I know you're okay.  
  
Please, Zechs?  
  
Why are you having to hold them off with a sidearm?  
  
Why are they after you?  
  
I just don't wa-  
  
What is he d-? ZECHS LOOK OUT, HE's GOT A TRANQ!  
  
ZECHS!! To Your Left, The Doctor Is Tr-  
  
is..  
  
..taking you down..  
  
You can't feel anything now, can you?  
  
It's ok, baby. I don't know what's happenning, but I know you can't feel it.  
  
They're being gentle with you, Love. I don't know what this is about, it's so..  
  
It's so confusing, but.. but they're being gentle with you now.  
  
The doctor seems really worried about you. I feel it in him. They aren't going to harm you. It's ok now, somehow..  
  
It's ok.  
  
The nurse is checking that patient's stats. I can feel her relief. Whoever that is, they're ok, I guess.  
  
I wish I could just see the face through all that blur or tubes and bandages.  
  
Maybe I could make sense of this all if I only could see a face.  
  
They've laid you down in the next room, Zech's. Everyone's calm now.  
  
Dear Zechs.  
  
So many things feel so wrong when I'm seeing you, even now.  
  
Why can't I just touch you?  
  
Why are you in a hospital, Zechs?  
  
You're sleeping so soundly.. but you look so tense..  
  
Did something just happen to you, Love?  
  
I can't remember, there was something about the next room.. but..  
  
But there's nothing there but an auto accident victim..  
  
I'm sure I've seen her before somewhere. I hope she's okay.  
  
You won't believe this, but someone dropped a pistol on her back.  
  
What lame-brained hospital would let a gun fall on a patient's bed?  
  
I mean it's not there now, of course. One of the guards is taking it to an office. But I can still see where it fell..  
  
Nevermind, I'm rambling. I can't remember now for sure..  
  
Besides, it wouldn't have mattered.  
  
Even if it had discharged, anyone with that much metal in their back is probably bulletproof.  
  
I was just joking, Love.. Her whole back is.. It's not like she'd feel an-  
  
Why are you crying, Zechs?  
  
What did I screw-up now?  
  
------  
--O--  
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	7. Released

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
Dedicated to Limerick. Thanks for reminding me to get back on track.  
  
------  
--O--  
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Released.  
  
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--O--  
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The minutes so often vary. Maybe we will meet five minutes sooner. Maybe we'll meet twelve minutes later. But once I hear the sweep of your card, the perfect unbroken pattern will commence.  
  
A supposed glance of concern is tossed flippantly towards the wounded corpse on the bed. Three foot steps to the shelf, you place the linens cleansed of my blood and sorrow. Six footsteps to the window, you rope back the curtains.  
  
Sweet mindless nurse, will you ever see the pain you cause us? Cold metal railings block either side of uneven beds to mock our inability to surpass them. Hours go by stirring us to madness washed clean by the hums and whines of the machines you've melded us to. Do you know what you are, Nurse? You are our savior.  
  
And you have tormented me for the last time.  
  
Warmth strikes me, so day has come. Five steps to the cath-cycler. Will you take eight seconds checking gauges or the fourteen changing a tube.  
  
Eleven seconds, you surprised me. Did it hurt you, Dear Nurse? The change in your perfect pattern, will you ever recover? I'd walk more quickly these next four steps to the cabinets, we must cling to our schedule!  
  
Precious Nurse, you haven't realized my eyes are open beneath my lids. You don't know I've timed your every entrance and exit for days. You don't realize the warmth I felt on my skin woke me once, but very soon you might understand.  
  
Kind Nurse, you are our savior. You are the singular proof that humanity still walks outside the doors of this impenetrable stasis. How many victims of the world bleed to see you every day, to hear your footsteps and see your face? We love you, Nurse. There is no one else to love. And yet, this is how you treat us.  
  
Perfect machine-like precision, your goal, is it not? Do you think we lack enough machines infesting our bodies? Do you think we tired years ago of life or change? You mock us, Nurse. You mock me.  
  
Three steps to the sink.  
  
This, this is beautiful, Mrs. Nurse. This performance, it brings tears to my eyes. Or maybe they were brought from pain. Is that possible, Savior Nurse? That I feel something you hadn't given me permission to? That through all the drugs you poisen me with I still am conscious enough to perceive?  
  
Four more steps, and you will be at my bedside.  
  
Look at me carefully, Gentle Nurse. Watch me sleep. Watch me breathe. Watch me rot here in your timeless care.  
  
Smile your chipper painted smile. Tilt your hideous bulk over the side of my bed. Push and pull me, you graceless cow.  
  
So taken by your dexterous mastery of patient discomfort, you haven't seen my hand grip your neckchained passcard, have you?  
  
See, you can be good, Nurse. It doesn't hurt.  
  
If you had seen my hand, it would have.  
  
Be glad you're a dull and stupid nurse.  
  
The scalpal in my other hand would have made such a terrible stain on these clean, fresh linens.  
  
------  
--O--  
------  
  
That stain looks terrible. Damn it all, it's not like i have a million shirts to spare. Luc's going to kill me.  
  
Hell, what mission left me posted here? This looks like a hospital room. Must be a field op again.  
  
Heh, damn am I dizzy. Where the hell am I?  
  
Oh, well. It never matters anyway. I'm sure the moment I walk out that door, it'll all come back. And there's always the little pricks with clipboards to rattle off the agenda anyhow.  
  
Man, did I get drunk last night? How did I get so dizzy?  
  
Ok, right here. Yeah, I'll just sit for a while.  
  
There's something I'm forgetting, I'm sure of it.  
  
Oh, well. How important can it be if they let me drink the night before?  
  
Damn this shirt's ruined.  
  
OW!  
  
What the hell? What bit my neck? Man, that's sore.  
  
Why's the room spinning again?  
  
Ok, this is NOT a hangover.  
  
Ah, good. Someone's coming.  
  
"Hhhuuiaaa..."  
  
Ok, tongue not functioning.  
  
OW! OW! Shaking head, bad idea. Hair caught, ow.  
  
Proceedural, Soldier. Stick to proceedure.  
  
Free hair, secure upright stable position.  
  
Check.  
  
Stabilize perspective.  
  
Check.  
  
Stand.  
  
....  
  
Now Move.  
  
So, I'm numb. Something's happened here.  
  
Why am I in a hospital?  
  
Gods, this is too much like that nightmare I had.  
  
Someone's approaching.  
  
They better have answers.  
  
------  
--O--  
------  
  
"What's This About?"  
  
"Doctor, We can't find the detox patient, Ms. Catalonia."  
  
"Mother of God. Activate secure lockdown, Combat level 3. Authorization code: 637C9. Get All security personal here now."  
  
"Doctor, Sir. We're not under attack. She hasn't been kidnap-"  
  
"Apparently, You Didn't Hear Me! AUTHORIZATION CODE: 6 3 7 C 9! ALL PERSONELL HERE NOW!"  
  
The lobby dropped to silence as the stunned operator complied with the surreal commands. Doors were quickly cleared and checked as the first of three levels of blast doors silently sealed everyone in. The guards from every floor took up arms and rushed to the doctor's position. They scanned the lobby for threat, but found nothing but the Doctor himself coldly fuming by the stunned receptionists. The head of security stepped forward with obvious question in his eyes. Despite the frustration eminating from his very being, the Doctor seemed quite non-chalant in the way he took a printout from the receptionist and liesurely scanned it before speaking.  
  
"Gentleman, we have an potentially lethal situation. I want three groups. One will remain here and guard these receptionists and make sure no one within these walls other than myself deactivates the lockdown. Second group, you will disarm your weapons and leave them here. Spread out to all floors and patrol the halls unarmed. It is your presence and not your skills that I require. You will not confront anyone, but simply report back patient numbers to the receptionists here to verify tally. Third group will go with me. leave all exteraneous or removable weaponry here, take only what you'll have both hands on at all times."  
  
The leader stepped forward. "Sir, with all do respect. You can leave our job to us. The alarm was for a stray patient. This is a search'n'rescue at most. We can handle it."  
  
The Doctor stared evenly into the eyes of the soldier for a long moment, then spoke in a calm icy tone. "It is clear to me that you have no grasp of the situation. This is not a simple search. This is the woman we are going to apprehend."  
  
Folding the top down, he showed the soldier the bottom half of the printed dossier.  
  
"This information is obviously top secret. These are most of her documented skills and resources."  
  
The way the soldier's eyes widened and jaw slackened told the doctor that he was finally taking the situation seriously. He looked ashened as he closed his mouth and nodded and turned to his men.  
  
"The Doc ain't playin'. Form up and MOVE!"  
  
As his men discarded weaponry and took up positions, the security head confronted the doc once more.  
  
"Two ex-White Fangs in one building. I know that Merquise's past. Why did you only call in five soldiers then, but all of us now?"  
  
"He was distraught over his wife's condition, and was strictly localized. Even with the gun he posed only a suferficial threat due to this wife's presence. Ms. Catalonia is different. She could be anywhere. Her motives are not clear. The medications she's on could possibly impair her judgement. And she was suicidal before she even arrived. This is not someone easily handled, should she prove vindictive."  
  
"Why are you ordering my men to disarm?"  
  
"I don't wish to incur a body count."  
  
The guards grimaced at the insultuous suggestion that they would be so flippant about shooting in a hospital. But when each looked to the head of security, they realized the man was nodding sympathetically. Confused, they looked between the Doctor and their leader. It dawned on them that the bodies the Doctor was worried about were their own."  
  
------  
--O--  
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	8. Seen

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
Dedicated to ReBoo. Thank you.  
  
------  
--O--  
------  
  
Seen.  
  
------  
--O--  
------  
  
You have no idea how relieved I am to see you smile, Dorothy.  
  
It just seems like everything's been so tense lately. This is so what I needed, time away from it all.  
  
Do you even know these old people you're playing against?  
  
Oh, Dorothy, I didn't mean to laugh. I think it's adorable. Who'd imagine that a governing daughter of aristocracy would step down off her high horse to sit with some nice, old strangers in a hospital just to play cards and cheer them up.  
  
You know, your employees just won't respect you if they ever find out what a softy you are.  
  
Oh, I'm sorry. Shouldn't be giggling during such an intense match, should I.  
  
See I have the advantage. The one who sits out the game gets to see what Everyone else has in their hands. And I happen to know that the 5 of hearts you're about to pull is your biggest mistake this week. Yep, Mrs. Fairbanks is about to show you the meaning of defeat, Missy. And your seductive smile won't be worth a cent against her. See if it was Mr. Willis there, I bet a cute pout and that big chest of yours would buy you the world.  
  
You always did have a beautiful smile, hun. I wish I could see it more. Do you know how many pictures of you we have? All over the house. One wonderful Zechs, one stunning Dorothy, and one plain old me, quite the trio. But I've been meaning to admonish you one more time about those pictures, girl. What's your problem with smiling?  
  
I mean you're smiling in them all, but I know you're faking it. I've seen that crest smile when you're at galas and board meetings. Those aren't real Dorothy smiles. It hurts, hun. I know there's something you're not telling me when we're all together.  
  
Sorry, sorry. I keep forgetting to shut my fat mouth while a game is on. Don't want to interrupt such an important round. Especially when I'm about to watch you crash'n'burn. But surely your sweet, kind sister Luc wouldn't stand for anyone taking a win from my girl Dorothy. Especially in your horrific state, wheelchair-bound and all. You're so silly sometimes, but it'll catch up to you someday. You know, a nurse might come along and notice that wheelchair missing, then what would you do, hmm?  
  
See there? A security guard. I bet he's on to you. In fact, I'm going to go talk to him now, and tell him I saw that sexy blonde at the cardtable deliberately steal goverment property. Yep, no more joy rides for you.  
  
I am so in the wrong line of work. Look at this, Dor. What did I ever do to deserve the hours I get slaving away over a desk or tarmac while Mr. Big Bad Gaurdtype here gets a paycheck for wandering around counting heads. Now That's a crime, I tell ya.  
  
Hey Guard! Vehicle Thief! Right Here!  
  
Just kidding. Seesh, he doesn't even see me. I really would have had to yell to get that blockhead's attention. Some dunce he is, doesn't even see a superior officer in the room. He sure noticed you though. Even in attendee scrubs, that figure of yours just doesn't quit, does it. Poor idiot's been back to your table three times to check out the game. Apparently he thinks your hiding cards down the front of your shirt. Men.  
  
Still sticking to your game, eh? You smart not to look up at him, he might get a nosebleed. Anyhow, he's going now. Now I get to see you writhe under the crushing prowess of old Mrs. Fairbanks. But it's your turn first. Doesn't matter, You've got NOTHING. Yeah, I'm allowed to laugh. That's usually the hand I'm stuck trying to play.  
  
Why'd you put your hand face down?  
  
You're pulling back from the table?  
  
You know better than to leave during your turn. How rude.  
  
Oh, you wanted to talk to the guard...  
  
....  
  
Dorothy...  
  
Talk to me, Dorothy, please? I don't understand...  
  
You thought it'd be cute to see if you could trip him with a wheelchair legarm? What are you proving here?  
  
What the Hell's Wrong with you, Girl!  
  
Did't you hear his collarbone snap? That could have been his neck. What's gotten into you? And Again? Dorothy, Please, STOP!  
  
I was kidding about telling him to report you, hun. All he had was a radio on him...  
  
That you're taking...  
  
And turning back to the table...  
  
And finishing your hand of cards...  
  
What you expect the others to be ok with that? They're in shock for goodness sake. But you just play your hand like nothing happen...  
  
Shrewd play, holding off Fairbanks another round. So you knew her hand afterall.  
  
They, they're calming down now. Talking them all back to the game?  
  
Dorothy, you're a monster sometimes, a cold heartless monster.  
  
Only a monster would smile through something like that.  
  
You're still smiling...  
  
Dorothy, it's getting cold... so cold... stop it please...  
  
That smile... is real... and was there all along because you had planned something so violent...  
  
What are you doing? Why did you take him down like that? Why are you even here? This is a hospital for Pete's sake.  
  
No wonder I never saw you smile... There was no blood on your hands with us. Is that what makes your smile? Violence? Pain?  
  
Magerson wins. Guess I hadn't figured he'd get another turn to even try. So now you're the perfect host again, thanking them for the game, leaving the table. Putting that body on the wheelchair, and now you're the perfect attendee again. How many hats are you wearing today?  
  
What's your explanation to them? Those old ears have heard lifetimes of excuses and lies, yet your silver tongue twists their better judgements like breadties. Only you, hun. Only you could brutally incapacitate an unarmed guard, and by the time you leave the room have friendly waves and even a few prideful cheers.  
  
What is your mission, Dorothy?  
  
So now you have a guard's uniform and a radio. Good thing he was unarmed. That's the only reason he's alive, isn't it.  
  
I guess I should just keep quiet about this, shouldn't I. This is a combat situation. Must be. And I'm just watching it all unfold around you. I guess I've never seen you work alone like this. I guess I can accept it. We all have missions that uncover something dark inside us.  
  
But your smile...  
  
It's a beautiful smile, Dorothy...  
  
I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cry. It's just that...  
  
I'm scared, Dorothy.  
  
You're so...  
  
You know that guard uniform is just too big for you, but you look good in anything, don't you. But I don't know what I'm looking at anymore, Dorothy. I don't know what you're thinking.  
  
Zech's always understood you better, maybe this all makes sense to him.  
  
Where is he, anyhow? Shouldn't he have been home by now?  
  
He was just supposed to run some errands, but it's been like an hour...  
  
I'd hate to see how slow he'd drive if he Hadn't bought that sportscar. Actually, if he didn't enjoy driving so much, he might just stick to getting the errands done and be back sooner. I think I'll steal his keys and leave him with the behemoth for a week and see how he likes it. Right, Dor?  
  
Dorothy?  
  
Zechs?  
  
Where is everyone?...  
  
Where am I?...  
  
Why's it so dark?...  
  
I'm... so cold.  
  
------  
--O--  
------  
  
I am coming, Luc.  
  
Just a little longer...  
  
Sleep just a little longer, Luc.  
  
It must be done before you wake.  
  
Before Zechs makes another move.  
  
He would only try to stop me.  
  
Such vanity. His presence drove me to this. I will not let it divert me from the pitiful resolution I now seek.  
  
The doctor is all that stands in my way.  
  
So for now, you will be silenced, Milliardo.  
  
When it is done, She will wake.  
  
When she wakes, she will understand.  
  
Will you understand, Zechs Peacecraft?  
  
A king should accept the valiant acts of his subjects towards the betterment of his kingdom.  
  
A king should understand sacrifice.  
  
A little longer, Zechs.  
  
You will understand sacrifice.  
  
------  
--O--  
------  



	9. Chosen

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing. 

Dedications: Thirteen of you have reviewed this story so far that I have not dedicated a chapter to. I can't express how much those reviews mean to me, though. Thank you, All. This chapter, though, goes to Angel of Mirth. After a long drought of silence, Mirth's unexpected reviews reminded me that I needed to get back to work. Thank you.

Note: The first chapter really was meant to stand alone. So I take no responsibility for how emotionally damaging this story has become since this is purely punishment for no one liking my first attempt at elegant closure. :P The current events will be reaching my next attempt at closure soon, and it will be up to your reviews to tell me whether to leave it in peace or torment you further. :) You iz warned.

-o-O-o-

**Chosen.**

-o-O-o-

With a loud tone announcing its arrival, the elevator's doors slid open. The third security group spread out encircling the doctor. He directed them down the hall pausing only by the nurse desk to have the two head nurses called. Elsie was nearby and returned quickly. She was obviously unnerved by the presence of the assault rifled bearing guards in close proximity with the patients.

As they moved to the end of the hall, the racket of doorbanging and occasional shouts cut the air. The doctor stood back and motioned for the nearest guard to open the door.

"Officer Merquise! Stand back from the door, Sir."

As it opened, the disheveled man stood speechless several paces back from it staring back at them intently. The forward most guards had steeled themselves for an attempted escape, but all he did was open his mouth to speak, only to be cut short by the doctor.

"Four of you will remain here and guard him. A window entry is not beyond possibility. The rest of you will guard the patient in the room adjoining. No one may enter but Mary and Elsie. Our greatest fear is a destructive effort towards one of the two officers. You know the rules of live fire in this building."

As he spoke, Mary rushed to the edge of the grouping.

"Doctor, there's an injured therapist on the office floor. He's unconscious and has a broken collarbone. But... we... don't know who he is."

The doctor nodded to her and looked to the head of security.

"I need two of you to come with me."

The head motioned orders, he selected one guard, then he himself became the second, falling in behind the doctor as they headed back to the elevator.

-o-O-o-

The doors opened and the lower guard steps out at full readiness. Seeing no visible threat, he motions to the two man behind him and progressed down the office hall scanning every cubicle to the floor. The doctor waited patiently till the guard reported back to his superior that the main room was clear. Then he addressed him.

"Very well. We're meant to be here, though, so you can stand down. Your comrade is in the lounge, fourth door on the right. Go ahead and take him back to the others, but be careful of his injury."

The head looks at him with a raised brow. "What makes you think he's one of ours?"

"Mary knows everyone who works here. And most probably none of my personnel would have presented a threat. This was probably just an invitation. The room at the end of the hall is my office. I leave that matter to you."

The head sighed and nodded to the guard to go on as ordered. Then he drew his sidearm and deactivated the safety, looked down the hall at the open door, and took the lead.

Taking every step seriously, he even looked above him as he crossed the threshold into the spartan but functional office. Keeping his back to a bookshelf, he edged along the longer side of the room till he reached the bathroom and quickly scanned it. His only job requiring his turned back completed, he nodded to the doctor and motioned him to enter as far as the bookshelf. He kept his gunarm raised though and scanned the final wall and its closeted recess closely.

A moment passed motionless. The doctor took a step closer, "Chief?"

The guard's gunarm dropped. The pistol clattered onto the floor. With a resisted slowness, then guard's body sagged, then fell after it. On his neck stood a neatly crafted dart created from a broken syringe and bulb.

The doctor breathed deeply and clinched his fists, but dared not move.

From the closet's darkness, the wolf in guard's clothing emerged. She inspected her handiwork with a sick bemusement on her lips. She lifted the pistol and turned her gaze to the doctor.

"Thank you for coming, Good Doctor. Be so kind as to shut that door and lock it. We have no need for interruptions."

He swallowed dryly and considered escape. Then his sense returned and he closed the door and locked it as instructed. He watched her situate the inert guard to a comfortable position against the wall.

"How bad is he?"

"An injured pride, that is all. Have a seat, Doctor. It's a pleasure to meet you awake."

"The pleasure's entirely yours. What are you intentions?"

She stood in the center of the room as he seated himself and faced her.

"Precisely the same as yours..."

"Then you'll have to enlighten me."

"To fix what is broken."

"Then I should congratulate you now on your fantastic work thus far."

"Oh, come now, Good Doctor. Despite your wondrous anesthetics, the sting of sarcasm is not lost on me."

"However, reason and moderation seem to be."

"Is that so? I would consider any act of nobility that ends in only one death to be supremely conservative, wouldn't you? All the moreso if it is the nobles own."

"I see no reason for suicide, even for those in power."

"Martyrdom, escapism, and insurance, each is compelling. Need there be more?"

"So which was it for you? I certainly hope there is no religion hallowing you as a moral guide and inspiration."

"Such a delicious contrivance that would be, though, don't you think?" Smile.

"I do hope you are not confusing the fact that I administered care in your recovery with the absurd notion that I appreciate your company, Ms. Catalonia."

"Careful, Doctor. I have a request of you. You won't sleep peacefully tonight if I state it as a threat."

The doctor considered this.

"I have no intention of testing the matter. However, I am at a loss as to what you desire of me."

She nodded towards the report spread across his desk.

"How much of that report has Milliardo seen?"

"None. He never made it passed her entry condition papers."

"Good. That is precisely how it will stay."

"What good would withholding a report about her current condition provide? It won't change the facts."

"Nor does it need to. It does, however, allow time for the facts to be changed."

He watched in utter loss as she began unclasping her uniform.

"I don't understand."

"Predictably. Perhaps a blueprint would suffice?"

She shrugged the top off her shoulders and released her pants to let them fall.

A long moment passed as the doctor lookedat her incredulously.

"I presume I would meet no success attempting to dissuade you, Ms. Catalonia."

"The attempt alone may cost you your life, Doctor."

She took a step closer and added coldly.

"But I promiseyou. Refusal to aid me will cost you far, far more."

-o-O-o-


	10. Witnessed

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing. 

AN: i) Thanks Angel, Icy, and Missbug, ReBoo, KillRaven. Chapter 9 was hard for me to write. Thanks for sticking with me. ii) _-pokes Icy-_ Emailed you but it bounced. _-cries- _iii) i miss the days when uploading didn't destroy the original formatting. _-mutters-_

-o-O-o-

**Witnessed.**

-o-O-o-

Guard duty again..

'Cadet Noin, we here at the academy feel that, given your condition and prospectus for recovery, it is in your best interest that we remove you from active duty and place you in rear guard.'

Yeah, my best interest.

You could have saved yourself all that formality and just said, "Well, it's great to see you survived, Cadet. Hey, it's even better that you saved the lives of your crew. But we've lost all confidence in you so we're grounding you for all eternity. Go stand in a hallway and look meaningful."

Gee, I'm glad this is my best interest. Stupid me would have thought standing in one place staring forward all day long was some kind of torture method.

And, Ok, so I shouldn't be running and jumping and wrestling and what not. That's fine. But what part of standing for hours is good for a back injury, huh? That landing must have messed me up worse than i thought. Man, do I ever need a massage.

I bet that handsome blonde cadet gives a wonderful massage.

Okay, Luc. That's quite enough of that train of thought. Not like the hours are going to go by quicker with a hunk on the mind. And no one's going to take a drooling guard seriously. Tighten your bootstraps, girl. Ok.

It was entirely unncessary to slap myself that hard. I'm awake, but I bet my cheek's red. Good going, Luc.

Sigh.

Who on earth is going to attack a hospital anyhow? Sure it's a priority structure and deserves protection, but..

"Ma'am, do you need a hand?"

Can't hurt to offer. It's not like I have anything better to do. As long as I stay on this floor, I'm technically on post.

Hm, she must not have heard me. She does look pretty tense. That gurney must weight a ton with all that extra equipment attached. Probably not allowed to let non-Med staff get involved anyhow. That case looks special.

Why are there be so many computer links?

Gotta be cybernetics, but still. That can't be all for just one arm or leg. Someone's getting some serious patchwork there.

That stuff sure is creepy, but it serves a purpose I guess.

That's... so strange.

Two hands, two feet, I'm sure i saw them. Just what is that poor woman getting done to her? They only do arms and legs, right?

Just how far can they go these days?

Gah, that smarts.

Ok, back to my post. Guess they weren't lying about me needing down time. I don't remember it hurting this morning, though. What did I do to myself now?

Guess it could be worse though. That girl's got more months in traction ahead of her than I ever did.

Ok, I heard it. Somewhere here, where was it? Someone's raising a ruckus. The crew in the wreck didn't scream that much, geez.

This room, no. Hallway? no. Closer this way, east rooms? no, no, no, woah. Bingo.

Four armed guards? Where did they comes from? They'd said I'd be alone on this floor.

Glad their here still. Man, has that guy ever lost it. Just from that patient rolling by?

Oh, Great! .. Bet this is another religious fanatic. Yeah, look at him, he's a mess. He's going to bust out into hell and brimstone any minute now about a soldier getting some metal in her to walk again or whatever.

Ignorant prick. Yeah, cybernetics weird us soldier out, too. But for heaven's sake, preach to your choir, not to us.

He's ... calling her name.

Good thing you didn't open your fat mouth for once, Luc. Talk about being an ignorant prick.

No wonder he's so distraught, but... I've never seen a man cry like that for someone who was still alive. Those two guards seem to have him pretty well secured in his room. Looks like two more inside. He looks weak anyhow. Just how long has he been there brooding over her in there?

Let's see, note, note, signiture, guard posted, note, note, here.

Two weeks.

Room Occupant Name: title title Officer-something title title Peacecraft.

Peacecraft... Sanc Kingdom Peacecraft? Small galaxy. Gotta be, only royalty would think up a title that long. Didn't know we flew royal types to remote base hospitals just to screech and threaten people.

Yes I can smile on duty. Hey, at least the only royalty in these parts is whining about a loved one and not about raising taxes. Guess they aren't all inhuman after all.

He... looks so familiar, though.

Probably seen him on the vidcomm somewhere. Bet no one's seen him looking that bad, though. Maybe I should get a pic and sell it to the tabloids.

Back in your cage, evil Luc. Not like they'd have trouble figuring out who took it from this oh-so-crowded empty hallway.

Groan.

Ok, curiousity killed the Leo. Blah Blah, I know. But it's eating me alive. I have to know what's the deal with that woman. I've seen mobile suit telemetry reads that didn't require that many wires.

Let's see, where did she go? Elevator stopped on floor four. On its way back up. I'll just slip down there and look around real quick.

Floor Four, Operating Room Floor.

Stop shivering, Luc. No one's going to believe I'm a capable soldier on duty here if I'm sicker looking than the patients.

There she is.

Wow.

Five, Six, Seven... Ten... Fourteen attendants for one surgery?

Oh, ok. They have someone else there, too. No wonder.

Wow, she's beautiful. Hey Nurses, while you're at it, could you give some of her bust to the wired up girl? There's enough there for two easy, and that cyborg chick could use a boost in self confidence when this whole mess it over. Heh.

Oops, shouldn't be talking in OR, should I.

Must be some serious drugs in the air in here. I'm feeling woozy just being here. Guess that's what those silly little mask things are for.

I guess wounds sympathize. Just looking at that poor cyborg girl is making my back hurt worser.

Worser, listen to you.

So sleepy. Glad you have those masky thingies, Doc. Wouldn't want you falling asleep or anything.

Ok, so why was I here?

Oh yeah, let's look at the print outs here.

Medical stuff, I bet I could pilot a Tragos with just a tech manual, but can't make jack out of this medical jargon.

Guess we'll just have a looksie at the patients here...

On table A we have a fine specimen of Cyborgius Screwedus, average height cute athletic type wired up like a cricket in a spider's web.

Table B, seems we have here Blondicus Beautimus. No surface injuries visible. Here we see a classic example of their tendencies towards huge chests they use to lure in helpless prey. Shorter than Cyborgius, but far more deadly. This fine specimen is also bearing the blue tribal markings on her mid to lower torso of the... um.. their something..

What are all those blue marks anyhow? Bet they keep the OR off limits so no one will see them doing weird black magic rituals and stuff. Heh.

For goodness sake, Focus Luc. When did I get so silly? This is important stuff here.

Definitely some kind of blueprint. Those dotted lines there are for incision marks. Those marks there must be measurements. Those...

Ok, surgical map. Now I get it. Yeah, that makes sense. Might as well get all that info mapped out in big blue letters so they won't muck it up later. So now that nurse there reads them off while the one over here draws the schematics on the wired patient..

Man, that marker tickles.

-

Oh My God...

-o-O-o-


	11. Annealed

Disclaimer: I'm merely a fan. I own nothing.  
To Angel, MissBug, Limerick, and Chibi Tsuki - Thank you, both for what you've given us in your own fics, and what you've given me in acknowledging mine. 

-o-O-o-

**Annealed.**

-o-O-o-

"State your orders, Soldier."

"Sir. Detain and protect you, Sir."

"Against what threat?"

"Unspecified."

"Hardly."

"Sir, my orders-"

"Dorothy..."

"Sir?"

Ignoring the guards perplexed expression, Zechs fell into an oversized seat. His days-old clothing, save for a slightly newer shirt, clung to his body and quickly became hopelessly rumpled. His voice was steady, eyes glassy and distant, but his hands continued to tremble.

It had taken all four posted guards nearly half an hour to calm his frenzy. Beneath his clothing, his body ached from a myriad of bruises and cuts he refused to admit to. He'd given each of them more than one reason to reiterate their displeasure with his outburst. As his mind strove to tie his attention to any possible matter other than what he had seen, he quietly evaluated each soldier's techniques and approach. Not one of them had gone beyond the utmost need to restrain or subdue him. They were too soft-hearted, too sympathetic to his plight, he decided. Obviously, these soldiers were not ready for war. They were as mentally ill-prepared for it as he had once been.

"Why is my wife being taken down there again?"

Silence.

"Answer me, Soldier."

"Same as before, Sir. We don't know."

Silence.

"Have you ever been in love, Soldier?"

"I respectfully decline response, Sir, due to the personal nature of the inquiry."

"It wasn't a question, Fool, not unless you're admitting you possibly haven't. We all have. Each of you has watched your life weighed on the scale of a woman's gaze. Your career, your accomplishments, your talents, your goals, your past... she looks in her hand and chooses what she'll accept and what she'll discard. Never take it for granted, Soldiers. I've seen a battalion of trained soldiers sacrificed in an hour, and how often was that merely a decoy. I can look back at what happened on those days and tell you it was duty. I can show you the map and tell you the purpose it served..."

He stood and walked towards the door heedless of the guards blocking it. His gaze passed through them to the floor where he'd seen her pass.

"...But what i saw there... had no purpose. ...That was a sacrifice with no meaning."

The nearest soldier to him held his silence till he could no longer. His soft intonation betrayed his heartfelt concern for the mournful officer husband.

"Sir, I have to ask you to step back."

"Of course you do."

Zechs turned and approached the chair once more, gripping its armrest and gazing towards the guarded window. None of his movements kept in synch, his legs wanting to keep walking, his arms wanting to hold something tightly, his back wanting to buck free of the very real-feeling weight on his shoulders. The moment of stillness only reverberated to sudden launch back into pacing the room.

"What are they doing to her?"

"Sir, we don't-"

"No! I mean... just think about what we saw. I know she has a spineguard now... so she at least injured her back, but anyone gets those today till they are certain the spinal cord isn't pinched by a crushed vertebra. But all that machinery... Any of you have cybernetics?"

One door guard and one window guard nodded.

"How much?"

Door guard responded, "Five percent, knee joints, leg enhancement."

Window guard, "Twenty percent, right shoulder, some internal organs."

Zechs turned and walked towards the window guard completely ignoring the first. He stopped his approach the moment the guard's eyes betrayed the imaginary line. He narrowed his gaze at the soldier for a long moment reading anything he desired to see from the less-than-full-human's soul.

"You were shocked to see that fortress of wires and nodes as well. That was more than you'd ever seen before, wasn't it. You saw something there, didn't you. You were muttering a number under your breath."

"Forty-seven, Sir."

"Forty-seven what..."

"The last node on the left calf was labeled #47. My shoulder only required three. A liver, collapsed lung, and a kidney took twenty-two. I've never seen more than thirty-one at a time on a single patient in my life. And..."

He tried to fade the last word before being noticed. He turned back to the window a bit too quickly. Zechs remained there clenching his fists, gaze boring into the metal-shouldered freak.

"And?... What happened to Mr. Thirty-one, Soldier."

"I don't re-"

"ANSWER ME, SOLDIER!"

"She Didn't Make It! Okay, Sir! Thirty-Six Percent Chance Of Survival And She DIDN'T MAKE IT! HAPPY NOW, SIR! Is THAT What You Just HAD To KNOW, SIR!"

Protocol required that any situation had to be subdued without opening an escape route. It was actually one of the door guards who had to cross the room to restrain the shouting window guard. Zechs had stumbled back several paces and collapsed into the seat swept away in new tide of grieving and agonized howling.

Time passed.

The conjoined questions of love, loss, and humanity lay bared, clear, and silent.

Sitting on the floor laying his head on the seat cushion, Zechs stared at the ceiling unblinking, a silent shell of the man drained of so much emotion.

At the furthest end of the hall, the elevator dinged.

"Time?"

"Just passed oh-three-hundred, Sir."

"How long has it been?"

"Guess about... six hours, Sir."

"Someone look and tell me who that is."

One door guard looked to the other, received a nod of agreement, and leaned out into the hall.

"Not your wife, Sir. Never seen this one before. Must be a new patient."

"How comforting."

His deep melancholy made the brief response the most discomforting thing the guards had heard the entire time.

"Room 5's ready."

All five heads turned to see the nurse Elsie calling down the hall to the approaching patient's escort. She had just left the room across the hall, but now approached them with a warm smile.

"Would any of your gentleman care for any drinks or snacks? I'm afraid I only have patient food to offer..."

The four mumbled dishearteningly about duty restrictions during high alert, but Zechs drew himself up to respond.

"Orders prohibit me from leaving this room, Madam. However, within this room I am the ranking officer. Gentleman, I am lifting the duty prohibition clause 4.213A. Feel free to accept her good graces."

Elsie hesitated looking from guard to guard for their acquiescence. As a general agreement was reached, she smiled and nodded and turned back to the nurse station to gather up packaged drinks. The patient-bearing gurney had only traversed two thirds of the long hall by the time she returned and offered the packets to the guards at the door. They shook their heads at her suggestion of entering, and instead took the remaining sealed packages and tossed them across the room to the other three inhabitants.

For the moment, between the thoughtfulness of the detainee, and the kindness of the nurse, the atmosphere had softened immensely.

"Is there anything else you gentlemen need? crackers? popsicles? jello?"

"There is one thing, Madam..."

The four guards each felt a shiver course down their spines at the silvery opportunism in Zechs' voice.

"...Would you be so kind as to tell me about the patient moving in to room 5."

His disarmingly calm demeanor was convincing to her, but most unnerving to the men.

"Oh? Well let me see." She turned to the side and needed only to take a handful of steps towards the approaching gurney. "She's a beautiful blonde lady. Just returned from a transplant surgery. She-"

"DOROTHY!"

The chair even fell back with the abruptness of his leap. Drink flung aside, He wildly dove towards the entrance. The two door guards freed their hands and formed an impenetrable wall of muscle for Zech's weary body to slam harmlessly against. His head and neck strained between the massive shoulders to glimpse the Desecrater herself.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY WIFE! TELL ME! WHAT DID YOU DO TO LUC!"

The nurses rushed the gurney, and its unconscious burden, towards its destination. The guards grappled with the sobbing, screaming maniac. His rage soon became as strong and unyielding as ever. His pitched screams split the air in a constant painful assault to everyone's ears and minds.

And through it all, the patient blissfully slept.

And each guard, and both nurses, would gladly attest that one oddity surpassed every other feature of the slumbering patient.

For weeks to come, only on nights filled with sleeping pills or alcohol would the vision leave their minds in peace.

As Zechs' accusations assaulted her ears...

...the sleeping woman smiled.

-o-O-o-

**to be continued...**

-o-O-o-

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	12. Said

( disclaimer - this is a fanfic, and i am merely a fan )

( dedication - angel of mirth .. thank you, for never giving up on me. thank you all. )

* * *

**... -**o**- ... -**o**- ... -**o**- ...**

**- Messages -**

**- Chapter 12 -**

**- Said -**

**... -**o**- ... -**o**- ... -**o**- ...**

"I am telling you now, before the full breath of your response is wasted, that I am speaking to you on a muted comm and cannot hear your responses.

A childish act, I agree, and quite fitting, I suppose, considering my regrettible immaturity in all such matters involving you.

But had you responded to a gravestone, i imagine it would be no different.

Still I think that would have been better than this, don't you?

It seems i misinterpreted my role in this drama. How incredible were my dellusions of grandeur to presume I could rightfully step from my role as the handsome prince's whipping girl.

I knew long ago I was never destined to be any more than a tool of your rise, Oh King.

But just how thick were the blinds you stitched to me eyes to hide my destiny of futile stagnation at your side?

Fuck you, Zechs.

You couldn't stop at taking her body, her heart, my power, my breath.

You stole my death, Your Highness.

And maybe, just maybe it is time to explore your vast, bloated kingdom, Handsome King Peacecraft.

Allow me this aside. In the days I've had to contemplate how what went wrong, I found myself breaking down the complex events and ever reaching the same mysterious key.

Did you ever realize the extensive applications of the Law of Conservation of Energy?

As a seasoned tactician, you obviously have noticed the amazing similarieties between wars and physics. But you never involved yourself in direct calculations, did you. You never made the mistakes my family made. You knew there was something more.

In 1685, Gottfried Leibniz had a name for that missing ethereal step. Think back and try to rememeber what he called it.

Hundreds of years have clouded his simple explanation by numbers and formulae. Such a pity, is it not? A statement as majestic as the colored lights raining down across a cathedral's floor, and man cannot sleep till he has torns its hues from God's numbered canvas to destroy its holy perfection.

The term still applies to Celestial Mechanics ... how fitting, don't you think? ... Lightning Count.

'Vis viva'

'Living force'

Passion, Zechs.

Love, Milliardo.

Emotions, Count.

Will, General.

Fuck you.

Fuck you for forgetting those, Merquise, forgetting them now when your survival has relied upon them so completely.

I died for them.

Luc will wish she had.

And she doesn't even know it yet..

That you will never love her as a human again.

Oh, you loathe the laughter in my voice, don't you?

Good.

Guards? ... Gentleman, please be on guard.

Fifty-six, Zechs.

Fifty-six Percent.

She'll wake, soon. I think I'll tell her myself.

We both know you'll never look at her again, you Supremist Fuck.

Gentleman Guards, how does he look at you each?

Three of you have cybernetics. And you've told him, haven't you? Or had you heard the rumors of the lauded Count's immeasurable disdain and kept your little secret hidden under the provisionary auspice of Act 3.491's 'Optional Secrecy' Clause? I, for one, would suggest it, all things considered.

You don't like a civilian giving your soldiers ideas, do you Zechs.

It's the only humanitarian thing I can do, knowing they are in such proximity with such an outspoken advocate of 'death before mechanation'.

Gentleman Guards, don't you think it is humorous as well?

The Cyborg hater in your midst is now married to one.

The handsome blonde king, and at his side the metal half breed on her knees leashed to his hand.

Why don't we offer her a divorce before you look at her again? ... In truth it is the only humane course of action. I mean let's be honest. You wouldn't sleep with a half woman.

Oh wait, she's actually not even half natural anymore, is she?

Oh too rich, too deliciously rich.

Please... , please forgive me. I speak with so little tact, so small a pittence of propriety. How foolish of me to suggest you'd actually look at what you sleeping with.

I mean, certainly you look where you're aiming, but we must be rational here.

She turned her back on an entire planet to follow you, Zechs. She gave up every fleeting hope of understanding your cause and yet still oathed her life to you to stay by your side and follow your lead. But she was just one among the half million other soldiers you waved to from a balcony and signed the waiver to their deaths, wasn't she.

You married her, Zechs. And I saw you say the words 'in sickness and in health' ... God, how lucky you are the ancient traditional chants did not include 'or dehumanization to a machine'. It would have been such a pity to watch you shake your head and walk away from such an indignant contract. Such a travesty to see you run from binding words so audaciously assuming you could be a man who loves those less than as wholy perfect as yourself.

Certainly, yes, we must allow Noin to divorce you quietly now. I hope you agree it is not her fault that legal clauses still content she is your wife despite her current state.

Yes, something quiet. A paper signed, and stamp placed. It will be over soon and you'll be free to find another lover from the thousands who already have married you in their minds and forsaken hearts.

Since you obviously never figured it out yourself, I'll go ahead and tell you that i was among them.

Facinating, isn't it? I bet you never guessed. Noin was a soldier, and I was politician. So the fact that you rebelled against your supreriors in battle after disowning your birthright to royalty means both she and I never truly had places within your new perfect life, did we.

Have I awoken your anger, Zechs?

Have I held your attention for these few brief moments?

You never granted me this much attention before for any other cause.

Love, honor, a half trillion gold or zero's entire armada...

My death...

Your wife's body destroyed...

What does it take, You heartless Fuck?

Fuck you, Zechs.

Fuck you, Peacecraft.

All I ever needed was to fu-...

was to...

God...

It's not fair, Prince.

It was never fair.

Not for me to live so close to you...

Luc to pay this price for saving me...

She wants to have your child...

And so did I...

I guess there's only one contender now, not that you ever had a clue anyhow, so it really doesn't matter.

Luc will wake in less than one hour.

Obviously they won't let a maniac like you anywhere near her till she's recovered from the news. So I'll pass on your regards.

I'll be your little messenger...

Just like old times...

I've accepted my fate.

Noin will accept hers.

Fate just seems to accept you, though, King.

So I'm sure you'll be fine without us.

What little of my debt to her, that can be paid, has.

She'll do anything to keep you, but I'm sure she'll accept your rejection with dignity.

And I will forever pay for my weakness that I could not.

I know better than to ask forgiveness...

And I never wanted your pity...

Actually, I find myself comforted by your hatred.

Why couldn't you have just been mean to me, Zechs?

Why couldn't you have just driven me away?

How thick are the blinds, Merquise?

The ones that avert your eyes from the pain of those around you?

When you look at Luc and see how much pain she is in, will you see nothing? .. The same nothingness you saw when you looked at me?

Or did you simply never look at me at all?

It is time.

God save the King."

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	13. Heard

( disclaimer - this is a fanfic, and i am merely a fan ) 

( i can't dedicate the final chapter to just one of you. you all brought me this far. i want this story to continue, but i'll leave that to a new piece. i can't hide this plot any longer. you reviewers are too kind and too forgiving of my slippery grasp of closures. thank you, each and all. )

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**- Messages -**

**- Chapter 13 (Final) -**

**- Heard -**

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"I'd hug you, but I can't," smirkish sigh.

Wiping tears from eyes, "Don't try, Luc. We wouldn't want the good Doctor angry. Now would we?"

Shakes head very slowly to stay just ahead of the threat of new dizziness, "So I guess you're running away now."

Wince, nervous shifting on heels, "Yes... I think it is for the best."

Rolls eyes and looks away. "You think too much."

Sits on the bedside and strokes Noin's bare scalp and smiles sadly, "I suppose you are right."

Nods and looks back at her, "I'm not ready, Dor. Don't leave me to do this alone."

Soft lightened laughter, "Your husband is none too pleased with me, Luc. You have an entire hospital of dedicated professionsals at your side. Most of whom will be quite pleased with my departure" ...smile... "Matters have been... strained... while you were out."

Slow nod and looks away, "I dreamt of stuff being all weird." Looks down across her body and frowns. "But nothing this weird," flexing the toes of one foot causing the tiniest motor sounds only a stewwing patient would hear clearly.

Sometimes a confident smile is the hardest gesture to hold. "I cannot, in good conscience, say matters have gone quite as I dreamt, either."

"That was a really stupid thing to do, Dor. Don't do it again. Next time I'll kick your ass with my frankenstein boots on." Nods.

The stung was felt, the perfection of the facade fades, but the smile is forced. "I am devastated to inform you of this, but you look totally normal and no one can tell anything has changed, Luc. You are still the much admired, much feared, and much lusted towards instructor/officer we've always known. And kicking my ass will only have you arrested for assaulting a harmless civilian."

Weak laughter cautious of to much chest movement. "You had me till the 'harmless civilian' part," smiles and looks her over. "How.. um.. are you feeling?"

Leans in and kisses her dearest friends smooth scalp and straightens artfully hiding the extensive pain it causes through her body to move in such a manner. "If I think too much, then you worry to much."

Sighs and looks off towards the alien feeling in her toes again. "And... Zechs... what does he do too much?"

"Spends too much time in the company of men," deadpan nod. "In fact, I think he's gay, personally. And more so, probably in denial."

"Hmmmm. Yeah, that explains alot. Like he's always posing and stuff. And has Way more hair care things than I ever did. I mean, you know, when I had hair." Sudden look of fear, "Oh God, I spend all my time in the office around nothing but women, am I gay, too?"

Rubs her shoulder consolingly, "I didn't want to be the one to tell you, Luc. But yes, you are gay... Look on the bright side, though. The buzz cut is in and you wear a uniform, so you'll be the most populat lesbian idol in sight for months to come."

Groans. "That's It! When I heal up from saving your butt, I'm going to kill you. Mark it on your calendar, Ms. Catalonia. 5 PM, Thursday, Asswhooping by Freak Lesbo-Android."

A small amount of genuine cheer finds its way into the silvery laugh. "And you still question my decision to run? I am quickly finding this city to be a quite hostile enviroment."

Hmgh. "If you find a place that's safe and warm and inviting... you better give me the coordinates... I don't like sleeping in the rain. And I'm pretty sure that's where I'll be when I get out."

"Oh, Luc... You know he'll be a perfectly supportive mate. This won't change the love between you both."

(...silent gaze...)

"It's not about change, Dor. It's just over."

"Luc, don't talk like that. That's terrible. You are his wife and he loves you. How can you fathom an injury obstructing your vows? He will be elated to see you recovering and utterly blind to the method, Luc."

A somber smile often cuts deeper than a knife, "You know him better than that."

"Yes.. I do... I know he'll be shaken by the changes. I know he harbors a deep hatred towards man-machine augmentations. However, he has yet to face a loved one bearing that burden. As yet he has only faced the enemy. And you are not his enemy, Luc. I know how emotionally distressed he is. I spoke to him just an hour ago."

Raised eyebrow. "Ahhhhh. That explains it. The doctor said he was 'enraged beyond all reason' and wouldn't be allowed to see me just yet." Smirk. "Poor Zechs. You did that just to see me first, didn't you."

Smile. "I will admit that the effective outcome of the effort somewhat exceeded my expectations. But yes. I had to see you first. And you, I might add, are better off for it. I have no intention of laying the added confusion of our next confrontation on your bedside, primarily because I know you are an incessant host and will panic about not serving us drinks while he's strangling me."

Sigh. "Yeah, probably. But seriously, Dor. Even if he is nice to me and all supportive and whatnot, I know he'll just be covering up this big huge.. issue in the back of his mind. Asking him to sleep with me now is like asking him to sleep with a mobile suit."

Laughter, raised brow. "Sweet Creation, Luc! What kind of medication does the doctor have you on anyhow? In a month you will have nothing to show for this but One visible stripe down your spine. That is All. One polished stripe. Unless you suddenly start wearing backless dresses, which I still contend you would look utterly breathtaking in despite your legendary distrust for classic femininity, No one will know... You've gained ten kilograms from the implants, be thankful you are the only woman in history to accomplish that while not changing a single measurement. You can out-drink a colony of space-miners and suffer nothing more than additional strength in your leg implants from an overcharged fuel cel. And absolutely no one was fooled by your boy's cut. Zechs, and I, as well as the entire Preventer team know precisely how often you slip away to the salon. Your hair would have touched the floor had you let it, so we will take none of your pity-bribes about having to grow it out once more."

A smiles depite it all, "Fine already, Geez! Can't you be nice to the cripple while she's still bedridden? Remind me never to invite you to any bedsides to cheer people up. You're mean. If I wanted a 'pep talk' I woulda called Une."

"That is absolutely Brilliant! I'll send her right over, as soon as I'm somewhere offworld." Laughter.

Groan. "Soon as she hears I'm taking more than three sick days off, I'm as good as dead. Lotta wasted work by the good doctor."

"Well we certainly don't want such fine work wasted. Which is equally the reason why you are not allowed to wither away in senseless depression. You still have a future, Luc. Saving me, and suffering in my place, has not changed that fact."

"I wish I had your confidence, Dorothy."

"No, Luc. That would be a foolish desire. Enough time would pass with you wrapped in your own determination... and suddenly you'd find yourself hanging from a balcony ledge... still just as confident that everything is as you planned it."

"Dor..."

"I know you're scared of facing Zechs. His childish aversions will be a constant annoyance, I'm sure. But you and he are meant to be together and this trial will only strengthen you in time. Learn from my mistake, Luc. Don't try to manipulate love. Let it do as it pleases... Be patient with him. Raise a family."

"Don't go there, Dorothy. I'm a big girl and I don't need to be lied to. We all know a lower torso reconstruction eliminates the possi-"

"Eliminates the possibility of childbearing with the patients original organs. Yes, I know. No cybornetic torso has ever carried a pregnancy full-term except in the cases of those that have received a doner uterus and ovaries. I've read the same articles."

Dorothy rests a hand gently on Luc's tender stomach.

"What you suspected when you missed your period last was true. As yet only the doctor and I knew it. Saving me cost you more than Zechs will ever know, should you keep the secret as you have. But you will conceive again, Luc. You will bear his children and live out the dreams you both deserve. You possess the means of creating life that he so loathes technology for lacking."

She kisses her deeply on the lips before stepping back from the bedside for the final time,

"...Dorothy..."

"Should your second child be a girl. Remember me in her naming. ...Farewell, Luc",

and withdrawls,

"...Dor..."

"God save the Queen."

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"Mrs. Peacecraft?"

"I'm not ready, Nurse.. I.. I can't.."

"The doctor let you slide with excuses, but he won't allow it today. You're husband has been patient, calm, and abysmal for two days now and we'll have none of it anymore."

"Just one more day, please? If I just-"

"Come right in, Mr. Peacecraft. You're wife is ready to see you now."

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**-end-**


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